Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - Pages ...
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
OUTHIER’S JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE TO THE NORTH. 30Fr
Monday, the eighth, {till fine weather ; the obfervation at night was perfectly made:
the cold increafed, and the ice in the river, which had thawed, appeared again. ‘Tuel-
day, the ninth, was cloudy. Wednefday, the tenth, fine, and our obfervations were very
well made ; but time now no longer allowed of more, and M. de Maupertuis was per-
feétly fatisfied with them already made. All thofe by the fextant gave the fame diftance
of the ftar d of the Dragon from the zenith, within two or three feconds, ‘The different
obfervations on the fimple pendulums had alfo been made with all poffible care, but did
not give the fame refult to equal nicety. Two of thefe pendulums were bars of iron
well polifhed ; one cylindrical turned ; the other lozenge-fhaped with four fides; three
others of thefe pendulums were made with a ball of brafs, filled with lead, ftrongly
foldered tc a rod of fteel, at the end of which it was fufpended upon two knives.
Wednefday night, when I returned to Corten Niemi to Purainefe, I found M. de Mau-
. pertuis come back from the mountain, who acquainted me with the refult of the obferva-
tions on the fimple pendulums, and told me he was defirous that at leaft one of the ball
pendulums, inftead of being fufpended on two knives, fhou!d be hung ona ring, or rather
a fimple fhaft fixed at the extremity of the rod of the pendulum: this, on the next day,
I effected ; in returning from one fide to the other, its motion was more uniform
than it had been when hung on two knives. I took away the ball from another of thefe
pendulums, and fubftituted a lentil, in order to determine whether the refiftance ef the
air being lefs, there would not be a difference in the movements of the pendulum ; there
did not appear to be any.
Thurfday, the eleventh, the weather had become very mild; but there was a thick
fog, which ended in rain; and afterwards there was nothing but a fucceflion of fog and
rain: ifat any time fome fhort intervals of clear weather occurred, they never happened
at fuch hours as were feafonable for our obfervations. Any man, except M. de Mau-
pertuis, would have been fatisfied with thofe we had already made, as well with the
fextant as the fimple pendulum; he however wifhed to wait for a return of fine
weather, to repeat them. We had now reached the twentieth of O&tober, without any
appearance of it; the barometers rofe feveral lines, and notwithf{tanding we had conti-
nually either fogs, rain, or fnow, which melted as it fell. In cafe the weather fhould
become clear, the feafon being far advanced, we ran great rifk of being detained at
Pello at leaft for a month: there would have been a froft fufficiently fharp to freeze the
river; andas long asthis remained without becoming much more fevere, the ice would
have prevented the navigation of the river, without being fufficiently hard to bear fledges.
Befides, it was defirable to fuffer as fhort an interval as poflible to elapfe between the
obfervations made at Pello and thofe to be made at Torneo.
All Saturday, and Sunday, the twenty-firft, was paffed in deliberating on what fhould
be done; and at laft, the bad weather {till continuing, we determined on going. Mon-
day motning, the twenty-fecond, we went up the mountain and took down the fextant
and all the inftruments, which kept us employed till five in the evening, when we re-
turned to Corten Niemi.
Tuefday morning, the twenty-third, the fextant, part of the fimple pendulums, the
pendulum of M. Le Roi, and almoft all the inftruments, were put on board five boats ;
Mefirs. Camus and Celfius embarked at the fame time, to fall down to Torneo, and
prepare there a proper place to fix the fextant in, and to make obfervations upon it.
On arriving at Ofwer Torneo they took frefh boats, and fent back the five they took
from Pello: Meffrs. Clairaut and Le Monnier fet off the next day in the afternoon with
- three of thefe boats. We fhould have departed together, but the prefence of all of us
at Torneo was not indifpenfable during the preparation of a place for, and fixing the
5 fextant ;
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
